Fiji Airways’ move from an affiliate to a full member of Oneworld next year is likely to signal the end of the airline alliance’s Connect membership programme.
The carrier, which joined the Oneworld Connect programme in 2018 as its first member under the affiliate membership scheme, in June announced its intention to transition to become a full member of the grouping.
“Fiji was a Connect member and will be a full member at the end of the first quarter of 2025,” said Oneworld chief executive Nat Pieper during a media briefing in London in early December. “And I think, never-say-never, but that’s probably the sunset of the Oneworld Connect programme.”
Affiliate membership has struggled to gain traction at any of the global alliances. Fiji Airways is the only Oneworld Connect member, while Chinese carrier Juneyao Airlines is the only member of Star Alliance’s equivalent Connecting membership programme. SkyTeam has no affiliate airline members.
Pieper cites the complication of explaining the different status of an affiliate membership from a customer standpoint as one challenge. “The benefits don’t justify having something separate,” he suggests.
Pieper evaluated the programme first-hand at Alaska Airlines, ahead of the US carrier’s full entry into Oneworld in 2021. He says the airline concluded that if it was going to participate in the alliance, “we want a seat at the table and to shape where we are going”.
Fiji Airways will be joined by Oman Air in the alliance by end of the second quarter of next year, taking Oneworld’s membership to 15. “We are excited about adding places people want to go, whether its Fiji, Muscat, etc. The customer service on both airlines is amazing,” Pieper says.
The 15 members exclude Russian carrier S7, whose membership has been suspended since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While Pieper sees the potential to add new members, that is likely to be limited in number. “We cover 90% of global demand today,” he says. “Maybe we [will] get to 93% or 95%. But there’s not 15 more members to come.”
